Clothing in ancient Egypt

Adorned with precious gems and jewels, the fashions of the ancient Egyptians were made for not only beauty but also comfort.

[1] Unique headdresses included the khat, a loose headcloth worn by men of noble rank, and the nemes, a striped cloth reserved for monarchs.

There were several ancient Egyptian deities related to fabrics, clothing and weaving, chiefly the god Hedjhotep and the goddess Tayt.

[5] Still, only wealthier citizens could afford these materials[6] During the Old, Middle and New Kingdom, ancient Egyptian women mostly wore a simple sheath dress called a kalasiris,[7] which is shown to cover the breasts in statues, but in paintings and relief the single breast depicted in profile is exposed.

Surviving dresses consist of a body made from a tube of material sewn up one side, supported not by straps but by a bodice with sleeves.

In contrast to dresses shown in art, such linen garments tend to be baggy, and would conceal rather than reveal the body.

Made from human hair and sometimes supplemented with date palm fiber, they were often styled in tight curls and narrow braids.

[12] For special occasions, both men and women could top their wigs with cones of perfumed fat that would melt to release their fragrance and condition the hair.

The Egyptians were quite soberly dressed in white linen fabrics, and jewelry offered a possibility for contrast.

Gold was won in large quantities in the eastern desert of Egypt, but also came from Nubia, that was an Egyptian colony for centuries.

Glass and faience (glaze over a core of stone or sand) were favorites to replace rocks because they could be produced in many colors.

[15] The Egyptians became very skilled when making jewelry from turquoise, metals like gold and silver, and small beads.

Both men and women adorned themselves with earrings, bracelets, rings, necklaces and neck collars that were brightly colored.

[16] One creation that was specific to ancient Egypt was the gorgerine, an assembly of metal discs worn on the chest, either over bare skin or over a shirt, and attached in the back.

Findings were published by American Chemical Society in the journal Analytic Chemistry suggest that the use of lead in makeup was intentional.

The clothing of men and women of several social levels of ancient Egypt are depicted in this tomb mural from the Eighteenth Dynasty (15th century BC).
Sample of ancient Egyptian linen from Saqqara , dating to 390-343 BC ( Late Period )
Modern illustration of a man's tunic in the style popularized in the New Kingdom
Pectoral of Ramesses II .
typical depiction of a Egyptian man in standard clothes
Two tunics and a chest of clothes, tomb of Kha and Merit , 14th century BCE, Museo Egizio in Turin
typical depiction of a Egyptian woman in clothing of the New Kingdom
Network dress. Faience, blue and black cylinder beads, two breast caps and two strings of Mitra beads. 5th Dynasty. From burial 978 at Qau (Tjebu), Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London
Egyptian woman in a kalasiris
Female statue with clothing
Female statue with clothing, 2118 - 1980 BC, Museo Egizio ( Turin , Italy )
Merit's wig from the tomb of Kha and Merit , 14th century BCE
Painting of a woman with a wig and head cone , circa 1250–1200 BCE
Pectoral of Senusret II , Metropolitan Museum of Art
Ancient Egyptian cosmetic set from c. 1550–1458 BC, featuring, from left to right, a kohl tube, a razor, a pair of tweezers, a whetstone, and a mirror
18th Dynasty sandals, circa 1390–1352 BCE